[The Collaboration]

[Consistent Spontaneity]

The young lord smirked, but stood at attention to give his report. When sound did come from his mouth, Ivarine nearly did a double take. The voice that poured forth was smooth and beautiful, like a river of tenor notes. The way words rolled off his tongue mesmerized her more than the words themselves.

"The Isles are well, milady. The trade business does as well as piracy and banditry and the light-side rebels are fewer in number by the day. Near the city of Aatiah, the village Shr'eink has been successfully razed to the ground. A chateau is being constructed on its location to honor our gracious lord, the king...as well as his new queen."

Ivarine froze in her seat, feeling her own blood turn to ice. The young Lord Sha-lan could not have known--Shr'eink had just been a troublesome, dark-dissenting village to the dark lord and his forces, but to Ivarine, Shr'eink was home. Her hometown, where all her friends and family were. Pain and grief swelled up in her, and even with Amber's soothing she didn't catch much more of Lord Sha-lan's report aside from energy shields, fire-shooting catapults better living standards. But once again she returned her attention and listened as the new, terrible lord finished.

"All this pales though, in comparison to the discovery of the location of a certain item from fairy legend. If my lord would grant the Isles permission, I will personally return to your grace's hand the aos si's prized Aubergine Staff."

A collective gasp echoed around the hall and every noble turned quickly to the person at his or her side either to discuss this new development. Lord Sha-lan himself simply stood there with a devilish grin on his young face.

What's the Aubergine Staff? Ivarine asked, curiosity breaking even her grief. Amber was glad for the distraction and told her rapidly:

According to history and legend, the ancients of the aos si needed three tools that they used to control the world for eons: an Amethyst Minutia, the Amaranthine Torch and the Aubergine Staff. All aos si of age wore a minutia, so the main focus was on obtaining the staff of darkness and the torch of light. One family controlled the world for centuries, but when the staff was stolen, the peace of the land crumbled.

The minutia vanished when the remaining aos si went into hiding and the Children of Drunesd have possessed the torch and no one since even before my time have been able to claim it from them. The King himself challenged them but the Children fought tirelessly and finally the current chief, then but a little boy, struck him down in a lucky shot. Obviously the dark lord has recovered, but he is set on acquiring enough power to not only crush the now- old man, but also to seize the torch as his own. Even without the minutia, either of these items of power will grant him unparalleled power beyond what he has now. Now that the staff is within his reach, he will try to use it against the Children and claim the torch.

Ivarine understood enough, and glanced at the Dark Lord's reaction. He seemed slightly more pale, and his eyes were as black as ever, but a small smile crept into his face slowly.

Finally the dark lord quieted the hall with a small movement of his hand and spoke. "You have made good on your promise to wipe out Shr'eink; indeed you have earned your rank. I see great potential in you, ____ Sha-lan.

"Ivarine, my Queen of Shadows. You will accompany this young lord and return to me the staff."

Ivarine nearly refused at the thought of spending a moment with the repulsing creature, but swallowed her pride and said evenly as one would expect of a fully converted queen, "Of course, my lord. It is time the Children of Drunesd and their foolish rebellion are crushed by the full power of the shadows." Strangely, the words did not feel like a lie even to her and it was this mentality within her that frightened Ivarine most.

((One day I'll take a few hours and update all the profiles and stuff on the front page so we don't have to take too much time to search out details >_<

omigosh Yuki! I was going to name the fat lord something that began with A and had an sh in it as well! Artonshear or something like. HAHA. I didn't because I've been coming up with a lot of names that begin with A lately and didn't want that to influence the story >_< And Julie, the description was wonderful. smile

Again aubergine is another synonym for purple. It's the deep eggplant color.
Amaranthine is a more reddish tone of purple. (See, A >.<)
The concept of the three items came from the idea that conquering nations bring the torch (new policies, beliefs, ideas) as well as the sword (conflict). Since it was to be part of the aos si legend though, I figured it ought to be more magic-friendly. That, and with the staff we have sword, staff and bow in the story.
This was best coupled with the existing hair charm thing, also from the aos si. (Minutia just means item, like a trinket.)

Anyone have a first name for Lord Sha-lan? Because I totally started shipping him and Ivarine since the words "She noticed a young knight at the back of the room roll his eyes...." XD I keep thinking Julius, but that's too plan a name in the context of the other names.
Unfortunately I don't think Farle or Latices are good enough for Cadence XP.
ALSO. I just realized that the child mentioned by Cadence's amulet should have meant Latices. Gah sorry >.< Maybe it'll work this way as well though?

I also have no idea what the map looks like now. I'll...draw it out sometime though and figure it out smile ))

EDIT: So I took 2 hours while procrastinating to update the front posts. Hope they're all caught up! I also took the liberty of naming the dragon-hybrids eni'ein. (the -ein part being from the ner'ein/ dragon things.)  

[Illuminate Shadows]

((@ Minerva: Haha XD, there are too many good names I could make up with A. And if there's an A, I usually add a sh in it. xp
@ Julie: Dang it, sister, you hit the image in my head dead on with your description. How do you do that? You even got it down to the silver flecks in her eyes. eek Anyway, I'm going to use that character now, since I've taken a liking to her.))

"You have made good on your promise to wipe out Shr'eink; indeed you have earned your rank. I see great potential in you, Jarlsing Sha-lan. Ivarine, my Queen of Shadows. You will accompany this young lord and return to me the staff."

Ivarine nearly refused at the thought of spending a moment with the repulsing creature, but swallowed her pride and said evenly as one would expect of a fully converted queen, "Of course, my lord. It is time the Children of Drunesd and their foolish rebellion are crushed by the full power of the shadows." Strangely, the words did not feel like a lie even to her and it was this mentality within her that frightened Ivarine most. Before she could continue on to the next report of the empire, the door to the court opened and a young girl stepped in, flanked by two dark knights. The knights exited after the girl stopped before the Lord Atoshka whose face had seemingly frozen in surprise.

"Lieutenant Zaire," he hissed after finding his voice, "Did I not inform you that I would be occupied at this time?" There were incredulous whispers of speculation from the other nobles as well at the intrusion.

The young girl said nothing, instead sweeping into a low curtsy, murmuring, "Milady, my lord, I'm sorry for interrupting." She then turned to Lord Atoshka, tossing her sea-green bangs out of her eyes, "Did you not know that I was requested to flaunt the Southern Sea's eni'ein?" Her lord opened and closed his mouth, at a loss for words. It was fortunate for him that Ivarine's curiosity came to his rescue.

"What, pray tell, do you have to show us?" She had a sickening feeling that it would be related to the new breed of the dragons mentioned, but held her tongue, waiting for Zaire to show what she wanted. The young girl curtsied again, whispering her thank you, before stepping to the middle of the long walkway, there were some more mutterings and Ivarine noticed the Lord of the Northern Isles rolling his eyes again. The room quieted though, when the wings erupted from nowhere, sweeping upward to touch the pillars supporting the roof of the court. Zaire flapped them gently, explaining with a soft voice as she displayed the lethally beautiful wings.

"Feathers, modeled after the extracted DNA of owls, for stealth," she flapped one wing forward to demonstrate her point, other than a breeze resulting from the disturbance of air, there was absolute silence in the room, "We were bred specifically for quiet work, which will be difficult with leather wings which make snapping sounds when we flap them quickly to gain speed. Our wings," she drew one of the pale-golden extensions closer to her body, fanning out the feathers as she explained farther, "have a comb-like leading edge on the primary wing feathers which break up turbulence for absolute stealth travel."

"We are a combination of different DNA strands injected into a dragon embryo," there was a soft ripple of approval through the court as the black markings on the girl writhed to life and she transformed into a eni'ein. The dragon-hybrid slid up to Ivarine, staring at her with unblinking reptilian eyes.

"You can have her for your personal guard and assassin if you want, my Queen." Ivarine started as the Dark Lord spoke, "Consider it as a present from me." Furious words rushed up to her tongue, but with some reminders from Amber, Ivarine managed to force it back down.

"She is very lovely, thank you, my lord." Zaire swung her slender neck around dropping something into Ivarine's lap in the process before changing back into a human and exiting the room with one last curtsy, the Queen watched her leave before continuing to the next noble, "Lord ___________ of the Tundras."

((I'm sorry sad that was kind of random to suddenly pop into the story, but I really wanted to have some kind of communication between Ivarine and the empire. That's beside the fact that I really like how Zaire appears to me in my mind. sweatdrop ))  

[Consistent Spontaneity]

"Lord Kurshryk of the Tundras. Report."

An old but stately man with gray armor standing near one of the arched windows stepped forward and bowed to give his report, but Ivarine's attention was caught by Lord Atoshka's expression. The fat lord had scowled with surprise and displeasure when the Dark King had given his lieutenant away, but he dared not speak against the high king's word.

She tucked the small communication stone her new dragon hybrid servant had given her, fingering the smooth material as she listened to the report. Even then, it took her a moment to realize Lord Kurshryk was finished before Ivarine nodded. The lord of the tundras had been succinct in his report, but she was happy--happy? I should be upset!--that his little speech clearly established the security of the tundra region and the lord's own loyalty to the dark king and queen.

"Very good," she said, dismissing him and relied on Amber's prompt to call the next noble.

This report process continued for a good few hours. By the end of the court session, Ivarine was nearly bored to tears: it was the same report after another, their region was good, they made great progress, they loved their king and they wanted more money. Some were long-winded and spent 10 minutes to establish this while others like Lord Kurshryk finished in a mere minute. Ivarine took note of these kind nobles and silently promised to reward them for not trying her patience.

Finally, Ivarine made a short speech on the state of the empire as a whole, commending a few lords in particular for their achievements, reminded the nobles of their priorities and dismissed court for the day with the promise to convene again tomorrow for orders and distribution of goods. The entire court bowed, first to the King then to their new Queen before proceeding out the double doors.

"Very good, dear Queen," the king murmured to her as the hall cleared. "It seems you were productive in your studying last night while the generals were collecting taxes."

"Indeed. Iyza was extremely helpful in that," Ivarine said quickly, hearing the suspicion in his voice. At her words, they were instantly dissolved.

Finally the King stood and offered his hand to her. She took it, trying not to let her hesitation show through and let him lead her down an unfamiliar passageway.

"You seem to have recovered well," he noted quietly. "Your past is not giving you any trouble?"

He must mean my former alliance, Ivarine realized. She shook her head. "I am well again," she said and as she said it, it seemed true to her. A sudden notion popped into her head: she was always loyal to the dark king, and the last few years of her life she had merely been sick, deluded into thinking she was sided with the light-side rebels.

"I am relieved to hear." King and Queen were quiet for a while longer before he said again, "I hope you do not mind that I am having you accompany Lord Sha-lan. I understand he destroyed your hometown, sweet Ivarine." Her husband turned and smiled. "Once you have the staff, you may dispose of him, if it pleases you."

"It would," she said grief swelling up in her heart again. "But yes; we must have the staff first."

They stopped and Ivarine recognized Iyza and her new Lieutenant Zaire waiting for her in front of her rooms. "Excellent." He gestured to the two servants and said, "It has been a long morning. Rest now. I will send for you later in the afternoon."

"Where are you off to now?" Ivarine asked quickly before he kissed her cheek.

"To order equipment for your journey of course, dearheart. Until the evening." He settled for a kiss on her hand before teleporting away.

Ivarine stared where he had disappeared for a stunned moment, conflicting emotions raging within her. Half of her was touched by his care for her, the other revolted by his very presence and existence. But the latter emotion was quickly waning, and Ivarine felt a shudder of fright: was this real? Or was it some kind of black magic bent on warping and converting her?

"Milady?"

Ivarine snapped her head up and resumed the facade of a clam and powerful lady. "Draw my bath Iyza," she said. "But bring a map of the empire. My lord is not alone in his plans. I will do my part in this preparation." The green-eyed servant bowed low and hustled into her rooms. Ivarine followed, waving the eni'ein to follow her.

"As for you, lieutenant, _______"

((I had a dream last night in which Iyza was the eni'ein o_O. Haha! I too love Lt. Zaire's image. Updating the front now hehe

Ivarine and Jarlsing hehe heart I'm going crazy, aren't I?))  

[Consistent Spontaneity]

((Pokebump?

Also, this isn't going to be effective immediately, but I just wanted to give you two a heads-up for when it does: Due to NaNoWriMo, I won't be posting very much on Gaia during the entire month of November.
That being said, I'll try to check Gaia at least once every other day during this period so I don't fall behind and such, but just in case! smile
Thanks and sorry for the hiatus!))  

[Vanish_Mist]

"As for you, lieutenant, allow me to introduce you to the palace so that you may familiarize yourself with your new surroundings." The young girl curtsied again, murmuring a thank you. Ivarine smiled at her new charge's politeness, "No need to curtsy all the time, Zaire. I already know you have respect for me, and as my lieutenant, I would like to see some fire in you." Zaire's unearthly eyes flashed to her Queen's face, the silvery glints in them catching the straggling threads of sunlight let in through one of the few windows Ivarine stood by.

"If you won't be offended, my lady." Ivarine smiled again, gesturing for the girl to follow.

"I will show you my quarters first, then the rest of your new home." Ivarine spent the rest of the morning showing the eni'ein around before Iyza came to announce her bath was ready. Zaire, Ivarine had discovered, despite hardly out of childhood age, had an uncanny knack with weapons. Her aim was deadly and she could use almost any weapon she could lift with ease. When Ivarine inquired how the eni'ein had been exposed to so many weapons and mastered so many so quickly, the girl had answered with, "The Southern Seas are treacherous, my lady, it is essential for all children to start training at very young age." That had aroused the Shadow Queen's curiosity, hadn't Lord Atoshka reported that the Southern Seas were calm and prospering? Then why did Zaire say the place was dangerous?

Ivarine was drying herself off after her bath when the first words from the outside world reached her, Ivarine...remember us... The communication stone Zaire had dropped into her lap when they were first introduced suddenly flared to life, Don't cave in, please? Cadence. There was no mistaking the breathy, musical voice. When had Cadence learned to use magical means of communicating? Ivarine snatched up the smooth charm, staring into its green depths, trying to decipher the evasive blue swirls that made up the interior and the message-sending pathway.

What...do I say? I'm losing myself more everyday.
--------------------------------------

Cadence sat on the deer, holding her temples. The charm had done something strange again, and her mind was suddenly thrust into a world of swirling colors. She had briefly seen Ivarine and had begged the flickering image to fight the conversion, whether or not her friend had heard it at all was a different story, as Cadence had lost the connection as abruptly as she had found it. Now, she was back on the faithful deer, trying to get rid of the huge migraine that had appeared after her mind was safely back in its little bubble of privacy. Farle and Latices traveled in absolute silence, still in shock from the girl that had warned them earlier. She's changing, Cadence mused in despair, Her vibes are...different, like her soul has taken on a variation of the song it used to sing. How long until it changes completely?

The charm hummed something comforting, as if sensing her anxiety, and a solitary voice whispered, Fire casts light and music brings calm, young one, dark cannot reign forever. Cadence was still worried, however, even after the words of reassurance.

"We will be out of their territory once we reach the river up ahead." Latices voice broke into her thoughts and the group quickened their pace, eager to escape the dark woods and creatures behind them.

((Wah! I didn't think the girl would this popular eek ! I'm glad you guys like her though XP  

[Consistent Spontaneity]

"Aitski! You better hurry, or we'll not make it in time!" The small girl called down to her companion from the rock. In one hand she held a sling shot and at her side was a small pouch of perfectly shaped stones--runes-- that had various effects. Her companion held a similar weapon and pouch, but he also had a small stick purple-burning stick in one hand that he held close to his heart.

Ameloria of Drunesd stood as tall as she could on the rock, shielding her eyes against the glare of the late afternoon sun. She wore only the short dress common of young daughters of Drunesd, leaving her shoulders and arms out to tan, but she stood with unnerving strength against the wind. Not far behind her, Aitski was better shielded from the brutal wind, but his face was a constant mask of fright; they had not been gone from camp for half a day and already they had encounters hostile elementals.

"We've still got a bit of distance to go," Amerloria reported as Aitski caught up. "You...you're ok, right?"

"I-I"m fine. Aren't you cold?"

Her skin was rippled with goosbumps, but she shook her head confidently. "The important thing is the light doesn't go out. Come on. If we don't light the Torch by sunset we'll have to wait until sunrise to light it. And I don't plan on waiting for the next sun-water moment."

She patted him on the shoulder and continued uphill again, her bare feet faring remarkably well on the rock. Aitski glanced back and around him and for an instant he thought he saw a glimmer of violet the same shade as the light he held in his hand. It wobbled there as though a star that came to visit the land for a few minutes, before vanishing into thin strip that he recognized as the North _____ River.

Aitski shook his head and hurried after Ameloria at her beckoning. He'd been seeing that weird glimmer ever since he'd touched the stick that morning. What it was, he didn't know and didn't care to find out.

((Sorry, I couldn't think of a way I wanted to continue on either one, but I didn't feel like posting nothing and these two did need some attention :/ Sorry to make you guys basically make two posts in a row though.

^_^))  

[Consistent Spontaneity]

pokebump?  

[Illuminate Shadows]

It wobbled there as though a star that came to visit the land for a few minutes, before vanishing into thin strip that he recognized as the North Shrine River.

Aitski shook his head and hurried after Ameloria at her beckoning. He'd been seeing that weird glimmer ever since he'd touched the stick that morning. What it was, he didn't know and didn't care to find out. "We're almost at the top." Both Children grinned at each other despite the chilling wind, "Let's get the Torch lit." Ameloria took the light from her friend and helped him up unto a ledge before quickly pulling herself up. They both then continued their long climb up the treacherous mountain side with the wind howling at their backs.

"Why is this mountain made up of white stone?" Aitski jerked his head up at the question, Ameloria continued, "All the other mountains of this range has pale grey, purple, or black stones, so why is this one so untainted by any color?" Her friend shrugged, before flinching at the icy wind.

"M-maybe that is why we chose this mountain to mount the Torch on." Aitski managed through chattering teeth, "Come on Ameloria, the wind's become really cold. I want to get the Torch lighted." The girl nodded, feeling another gust of icy wind whip across her back, they continued on to the Torch without any more conversation. After passing through another swath of forest, they finally arrived at their destination, the Torch, although stated by the title of Amaranthine was not actually purple. Rather, it looked like someone had taken sapphire and ruby streaked marble to carve the structure from. The two colors twisted into each other at points on the Torch, giving the illusion of reddish-purple but always fanned out again into the distinct colors of blue, red, and white at the next conjunction of stone. The tips had been accented with gold and silver, but in no way, did the Amaranthine Torch actually resemble its name. Aitski and Ameloria exchanged confused glances, but advanced anyway and touched the purple light from their stick to the Torch.

"So this is why they chose a white mountain..." The light from the newly lit torch shone through the thin walls of marble and reflected off the smooth, milky stones casting the entire sky and valley with an unearthly dance of red and blues that melded together to create amaranthine. The two Children exchanged an awed glance before __________.  

[Vanish_Mist]

"The North Shrine River." Farle mumbled, catching the tell-tale way the big river flowed, Cadence had finally stopped needing the deer and Latices had thanked and dismissed the loyal animal for its service right before they reached the river, "Now what do we-" He was cut short as the river suddenly turned into a ribbon of purple and the entire valley was washed in the same color.

"What--?" Latices cut off his exclamation of surprise.

"The prophecy, it's started, all the other tribes will be on alert now. Let's go." The two boys ran off, not noticing that Cadence had turned back to look at the valley again in the dying rays of the last bit of sunset, her eyes had turned a strange black color her charm echoing the shift with a shadowy-purple of its own.

"Hvað er ekki skilið ætti ekki að nota." With those foreboding words hanging in the silence of the valley, the aoi si turned her back and walked away.

((Translation: What is not understood should not be used.
These words can be taken in any way, they can be a warning to the Children (pertaining to an item in the future), or they can be a warning to the Dark Lord's ambitions to seize the Torch and Staff. Either interpretation would work.))  

[Consistent Spontaneity]

The two Children exchanged an awed glance before realizing that the light was warm and huddled close to it, determined to savor the moment before they needed to return to their camp. Now that the Torch had been lit, the Children were on a tight schedule. War was coming.

---->><<---

Farle had a headache for the rest of the evening and was very glad when the Child of Drunesd finally decided they had traveled onwards. They had a paltry meal but Latices assured them that they would have enough food for a feast the next night.

Cadence stuffed her half-loaf of plain bread down her throat and turned away from the boys with a quiet "Goodnight", facing the North Shrine River and settling assumedly into sleep.

Latices ate slower, drawing a strange map in the dirt with a stick and ignoring everything else, which was at all unpleasant to Farle.

The pyromancer turned away, staring at the protective fire and glow that surrounded their makeshift camp. What is not understood should not be used. What did that mean? And why could he suddenly understand Cadence's strange words?

Actually, he didn't actually understand it. He had been staring at the newly dyed river though, and as Cadence had spoken, the river currents seemed to shift, and he thought he saw letters in it. He daren't bring it up to his companions; if Latices had any more clue that he was less than sane, they're relationship would just plummet further.

"You should rest, Farle Charles of Kraiton," Latices suddenly said, breaking his stream of thoughts.

"Huh? Um, sure. Just..."

"Thinking?"

"No! Um...Yea."

Latices chuckled. "Surprising. You think."

"Hey, what's that supposed to--"

"I was jesting ___"

((omigosh you shanged your username Julie! It's wonderful smile
And Yuki, I loved the way you described the Amaranthine Torch.))  

[Illuminate Shadows]

((Still around smile , we've both been busy though.))

"I was jesting Farle, but I do suggest you rest now, and make the best of it. The next part of our journey will not allow much time for proper sleep or breaks, we are entering the Southern Sea portion."

"Wha-?" Farle slammed his mouth shut as Cadence suddenly slapped her hand across his mouth, clear blue eyes narrowed as she tilted her head in one direction then another before gesturing for them to hide. Latices doused the fire quickly and vanished into the surrounding foliage, his two companions following suit. Cadence crouched up in a tree, watching the clearing underneath them as the suspicious sounds her sensitive ears had picked up became louder. A lithe dragon crashed into the clearing, wings open in an aggressive warning as the bluish forked tongue flicked out as an additional caution. A much smaller, more delicate shape stepped out into the clearing and Cadence recognized the young girl that had warned them earlier, How...how, did she... The girl put her hand out in a peace gesture to the dragon and walked up to it without a trace of fear, fanning out her feathered wings to catch the silvery moonlight slithering through the trees. Cadence, far away as she was, heard everything spoken although she couldn't understand a word of it. Dragonic, language of the dragons. Her charm informed her softly before settling back into her hair. The girl turned suddenly, causing Cadence to shrink back against the tree trunk, certain she had been caught by the twin green orbs of light fixing themselves on her before turning back to the dragon.

"I serve The Shadow Queen Ivarine and the Dark Lord. My lady has requested that a dragon be provided as a ride for her and I will much appreciate it if you will assent to that request." She paused as the dragon nodded its head tentatively and flew off before adding on something in a whisper, "Athsi'k nweit shik'ai."

((Translation: Someone has been here.
As a young girl, I thought that I would make Zaire less corrupted than she is supposed to be as a lieutenant of the Southern Seas. And because she serves Ivarine and is given permission to travel as she pleases with the Queen's assent, Zaire can become an important messenger of types to keep suspicions of Ivarine's stone down. Don't know, just my thoughts sweatdrop ))  

[Consistent Spontaneity]

((No problem, just wanted to keep this place alive >.< I'm struggling with stuff myself so >.<))

The trio waited until they were certain both draconic creatures were gone before stepping cautiously back into view. It was Farle who finally spoke:

"Ivarine's the Shadow Queen now." It was a statement more than anything.

Cadence did not answer, nor did she have to. Tears rolled silently down her eyes and she laid down, turning away from the other two.

"What does that mean?" Latices whispered, shifting uneasily. He wanted to move on; the two dragons meeting there seemed too chance for him, but he was tired, and he knew the other two must be as well.

It took Farle a long time to answer. "Ivarine is the Shadow Queen," he finally sighed. "She is an enemy now."
---->><<----

"My lord, the Amaranthine Torch has been lit. The North Shrine River is afire with its glow."

The dark lord's scowl would have caused the reporting servants to cringe, but that would have meant instant death and Dtrak and Nrwyn were more disciplined than that.

"Ready the black army and reinforce the gates." The black king ordered. He waved his hand in dismissal and turned back to the interrupted meal but did not eat.

"We must hurry to recover the Aubergine Staff," Ivarine said, reading his intentions. She downed the last of her drink and stood. "Lord Sha'lan--we should leave immediately."

"I loathe to rush you, my dearest, but if the North Shrine River has indeed been lit by the light of the Amaranthine Torch, then the Children of Drunesd have found an aos si to lead their accursed prophecy and will be readying themselves for war," the dark king agreed. "I will seal the Chamber of the Ancients myself. The Children underestimate our strength and knowledge. I will have my army strike first, decimating their bases before they have a chance to gather their forces. Then when the Aubergine Staff is in my hands I will eliminate them forever."

"We will be ready, my king" Lord Sha'lan promised as he stood. "With any luck we will return within a few day's time and these troublesome Children will be gone by the end of the week."

The lord of evil nodded and vanished away.

The Queen of Shadows glanced down at the unfinished meal and called for servants to clear the table before turning to the supercilious lord she would be traveling with. "Lieutenant Zaire should have carried out my orders and our rides should be here by the end of the hour," she said, sweeping out of the hall with her guide a few steps behind her. "Let's go."

((I am so lost as to where on the map Cadence, Farle and Latices are now, but...oh well smile
I also just noticed that my last post is riddled with errors.

Also, I wrote a bit of Ivarine x Jarlsing smutfiction last week...I don't know if it will really work its way into the story, but I could post it?))  

[Vanish_Mist]

((I would like to read it smile . Feel free to post it.))

What have I become? Ivarine wondered as she was greeted with the sight of her new Lieutenant waiting with two tacked and saddled dragons. Her companion spoke first, "Lt. Zaire, I trust the dragons will not try anything?" Lord Sha-lan inquired of the quiet girl, the hard green eyes instantly gave him his answer.

"Lord Sha-lan, if these dragons had been dangerous or had any ill intentions toward the health of the Shadow Queen, do you think I am quite insolent enough to bring them here with the Dark Lord in command? Or perhaps you are commenting on my intelligence?" Ivarine gave herself a private smile, Zaire had quite some fire in her after all. Iyza arranged her Queen's trailing skirts so that the dragon's wings were free of any restraint and so Ivarine could settle comfortably into the saddle. Zaire, noting the gown, spoke up, "With all due respect, My lady, I would suggest some less-restraining clothes. The terrain of the Southern Seas are mountainous and the undergrowth catches on everything. The dragon will offer some relief, but cannot stop all of it." Lord Sha-lan gestured impatiently.

"Queen Ivarine will be provided with such things, Lieutenant, let us get going. You are coming, I trust, as protection for the Queen?" The hybrid nodded assent, changing again into the slender draconic creature she had displayed to everyone in the hall. She took off first circling overhead, as Ivarine and Lord Sha-lan followed her into the air, Zaire dropped in next the Queen's ride. Ivarine concentrated on the twin orbs of flickering silver-green light as the darkness eventually swallowed the castle behind her, the eni'ein stirred a memory of another girl. One with black hair and the same innocent eyes, but Ivarine could recall neither name nor any other characteristic of the female. Keep fighting, Ivarine Callias.
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Cadence was being plagued by nightmares, but the subject was her past instead of Ivarine. She was her "mother" first, watching as the aoi si were cut down by an unseen force. Then she was herself, as the young girl she was before her people left, standing in a pool of blood as the leader bade her a sad last farewell. She watched as the once peaceful Kingdom of Torweh'ai tore itself apart from the darkness eating away at its heart, Cadence felt every single part of her being burn as her sa'tak lin went up in flames because she refused to reveal where Cadence was. Then she was standing on top of a tall mountain overlooking the beauty that began to stain itself red. This is what you have to fight for, Chosen One. This is what the Kingdom was and what it has become.

((A sa'tak lin is a spiritual friend and protector. Because Cadence was so important, one was assigned to her. The downside is that if one suffers, the other usually can feel the effects of pain.))